Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
1
pubmed:dateCreated
1992-3-17
pubmed:abstractText
It is argued that organisms have evolved the ability to biosynthesize secondary metabolites (natural products) because of the selectional advantages they obtain as a result of the functions of the compounds. The clustering together of antibiotic biosynthesis, regulation, and resistance genes implies that these genes have been selected as a group and that the antibiotics function in antagonistic capacities in nature. Pleiotropic switching, the simultaneous expression of sporulation and antibiotic biosynthesis genes, is interpreted in terms of the defence roles of antibiotics. We suggest a general mechanism for the evolution of secondary metabolite biosynthesis pathways, and argue against the hypothesis that modern antibiotics had prebiotic effector functions, on the basis that it does not account for modern biosynthetic pathways.
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Jan
pubmed:issn
0950-382X
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:volume
6
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
29-34
pubmed:dateRevised
2010-11-18
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
1992
pubmed:articleTitle
On the evolution of functional secondary metabolites (natural products).
pubmed:affiliation
University Chemical Laboratory, Cambridge, UK.
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Review, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't